dew point and your hair

[chen bao jun]

We might have this around somewhere on this site. I forget where I copied it from. It's so useful to me that I thought I'd post it again, though. This winter has been terribly dry but I think the dewpoint is getting back to where I can handle my hair better now.
Any dew point 15 degree Fahrenheit and below is very dry. Use as much moisture and emollients as you hair can handle without over conditioning or over loading and cut out humectants totally. If you have curly hair you will have to expect a looser curl pattern at this point, and those with wavy hair, may find little or no wave in their hair at all. For those who like to occasionally straighten their hair, this is a good time for it since you may have less curl to fight, and there is little or no moisture in the hair for it to ‘revert’.
Dew points between 15 – 30 degrees Fahrenheit means it is dry, add moisture and emollients. Limit or cut out humectants. This dew point range suits those with straighter hair, but that does not mean you can get away with skipping deep conditioners and protecting the ends of your hair.
Dew point of between 30 – 40 degrees Fahrenheit can be iffy. This dew point range is better suited to some straight, wavy and curly hair types. Some people find their hair can tolerate more humectants. Other cannot it is very trial and error in this range. I have to say personally my hair likes this range.
Dew point of around 40-60 degrees Fahrenheit means the air is moist but not oppressively so, straightening hair at this range becomes a trial. This dew point range suits wavy to curly hair, in fact it is perfect for curly hair you should get some curl without the summer frizz, but lots of shrinkage. Dry hair loves this range and is full and healthy looking. Find a balance between moisture and humectants that works for you.
Dew point 60 and up, you’ll need less moisture (usually) and some lighter humectants to help keep the environmental moisture that causes that summer frizz out of your hair.
Even those who like moisture will not need as much of the heavy stuff as they did in the winter. This is the time for your hard hold gels. Once the dew point gets past 70, it’s pretty miserable anyway, so you may just feel better putting your hair into an up do.

[ErinLeigh]

Thanks for posting this. I live in a very humid climate and need all the help I can get!

Here is a link to go with it.
http://www.curlynikki.com/2010/06/summer-curls-understanding-dew-points.html

Does anyone have any products they prefer when dew point is high? Most of my conditioners or leave ins are heavy and suited for damaged hair. Based on this I am going to have to switch for summer but not sure what cone free products will help. I don't know if that means I will need to go back to cones or find more oil based products.

[chen bao jun]

aloe vera gel

[Macaroni]

Very informative and brings to mind:

http://media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/736x/67/26/3a/67263a8ddf6efec999bf44b1028b970a.jpg

[cherrybird]

This is very helpful! I had no idea humectants were a bad idea for hair below freezing. My HG styling product is mostly humectant.

[pepita]

this information is useless in my location.i live in atacama desert (latinoamerica,chile),here is dry all the year,and trying with this information in summer destroyed my hair.i think values change depending on your location.maybe this chart is useful in usa or something.

[AutobotsAttack]

this information is useless in my location.i live in atacama desert (latinoamerica,chile),here is dry all the year,and trying with this information in summer destroyed my hair.i think values change depending on your location.maybe this chart is useful in usa or something.

I think it just means you need to do more research for your area and figuring out what works with your hair. It’s pretty well known to ease up on humectants in dryer weather. It’s also mentioned in the beginning half of the post to add more moisture if you’re in dry climates.

You however, don’t have to rude and declare it’s “useless”, just because something didn’t work out for you.

[Guitargod]

I think it makes more sense to measure humidity as relative humidity.
Example - a dewpoint of 60F with an ambient temperature of 70F means a relative humidity of 70.58% - pretty humid - while at 90F it's only 36.68 - dry.

[Ligeia Noire]

Silicones or butters and mineral oil are great in very dry climates as they block the moisture from leaving your hair. That's what I do and I live in a very; very dry climate. I still do my smts though, where I use aloe and honey which are humectants, therefore, seem to be terrible in arid weather but as long as you use them as deep conditioning masks in the shower where there's steam from where they can collect moisture to put in your hair and you do not leave with them in your head, it's all good.

[MusicalSpoons]

Question: as a lay person with very little meteorological knowledge, how does one find out the current dew point for one's location? I've only ever heard of dew points on here, in the context of humectants/moisturising/etc., never in daily life :confused:

[Kibrah]

Question: as a lay person with very little meteorological knowledge, how does one find out the current dew point for one's location? I've only ever heard of dew points on here, in the context of humectants/moisturising/etc., never in daily life :confused:

I just use weather.com it gives the dew point. On my phone its I the upper right hand side along with chance of rain etc.

[neko_kawaii]

Dew point is steadily increasing! Hooray, the rains will come in a few weeks!

Humectants below around 14% will result in straw, so most of the year I don't touch them. If I wore my hair loose, the waves and curls would be more defined as the humidity increases, but I wear it up mostly. It will take longer to dry, the more humid it gets. I do like that my hair dries in about 5 minutes outdoors when the humidity is single digits and the temps are 90+.

[neko_kawaii]

Question: as a lay person with very little meteorological knowledge, how does one find out the current dew point for one's location? I've only ever heard of dew points on here, in the context of humectants/moisturising/etc., never in daily life :confused:

It is also abbreviated as RH - Relative Humidity

[MusicalSpoons]

I just use weather.com it gives the dew point. On my phone its I the upper right hand side along with chance of rain etc.

Thank you! I then went on to find a UK site (weatheronline.co.uk) so now have some frame of reference - today's dew point is in the low 50s, on an averagely pleasant, warm day.


It is also abbreviated as RH - Relative Humidity

Thanks, I'd never heard that term used IRL before either (for a nation obsessed with the weather, you'd think we'd have more in-depth public weather forecasts!) but thanks to the article ErinLeigh linked, I now understand what it actually means, especially in relation to absolute humidity. Fascinating!

[Beeboo123]

Dew point here never falls below 75deg F, and perceived humidity is 100% year round. That probably explains why, in the past, my hair just un-straightened itself almost immediately after having it heat-straightened. I have perpetual frizz, and I haven’t seen anyone around with natural, less than perfectly straight hair, without at least some frizz. Now I know I don’t have to fight it, it’s pointless!